Ellen Elaine Daniel

Elaine passed peacefully on July 2nd with her daughter by her side. She is preceded in death by her first husband, Ronald E. Hughes, her second husband, Leonard S. Daniel, and grandson Jacob C. Hughes. She is survived by her son, Ron Hughes (Karen), daughter Jennifer Trainham (Tim), granddaughters Tracey Evans and Samantha Scott (George), grandson Jesse Hughes (Claire), and great-granddaughter Lora Avetisyan. Elaine was the daughter of Truitt and Catherine Brinsfield; she had two brothers, Truitt Jr. and Russell, and one sister, Carole Furbush. Many who know her may not realize she was a farm girl. This is undoubtedly where she learned to work hard and be frugal. Elaine graduated from Salisbury State Teachers College with a bachelor’s degree in Elementary Education and later received her master’s degree from the University of Richmond. She began a Kindergarten program at Corinth United Methodist Church and taught in the Talented and Gifted program for Henrico County. Later in her career, she had an Assistant Principal position at Highland Springs Elementary and Glen Allen Elementary. Elaine was a member of Delta Cappa Gamma, an international society for women educators. She loved children and education. Elaine was blessed with two wonderful marriages. She married Ronnie Hughes, and they started their family here in Virginia. Ronnie first worked as a chemist at Phillip Morris and later was a chemist at NASA at Langley Field. They became members of Corinth United Methodist Church and remained members for the rest of their lives. She was very proud of the Drama Group that she and Ronnie led. She always smiled and told stories of the youth members and the many productions they did. Ronnie was an amazing husband and father. He tragically passed away in 1979. Elaine married Leonard Daniel in 1984. They enjoyed life to the fullest. Together, they explored many business ventures, and they loved to travel. Their travels took them to Alaska, Florida, Louisiana, Arizona, and Wyoming to Yellowstone, which was Leonard’s favorite. Elaine’s favorite place is at the beach. She and Leonard had several beach properties in Myrtle Beach, Nags Head, and Assateague. A favorite treat when at Assateague was to visit the Island Creamery for “the best ice cream ever”! Leonard Passed away in 2021. Elaine had an exceptional group of friends that should be recognized. This group of couples were all members of Corinth Church. They met once a month at alternating homes to share a meal and were known as “The Dinner Group”. These friends celebrated all the milestones in each of their family’s lives. This group formed in 1968 and continued for 50 years. To put that into perspective, they began the year before man first landed on the moon and stopped meeting the year before COVID. They decided it was time to stop meeting because so many members had passed away. They agreed that the next Dinner Group would be in heaven. Elaine…..we will miss you! Until we meet again. The family will receive friends from 6 to 8 p.m. on Wednesday, July 10, 2024 at Woody Funeral Home-Atlee, 9271 Shady Grove Road, Mechanicsville, VA 23116. A funeral service will begin at 10 a.m. on Thursday, July 11, 2024 at Woody Funeral Home - Atlee with a burial to follow at Signal Hill Memorial Park, 12360 Hanover Courthouse Rd, Hanover, VA 23069.